Railway-switch lock



E. A. STEWART.

RAILWAY SWITCH LOCK.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 30, 1918.

1,333,784. Patented Mar. 16, 1920.

' IIVVEIVTOR ATTORNEY 1 UNITED STATES EMERY A. STEWART, OESIOUX CITY, IOWA.

PATENT OFFICE.

RAILWAY-SWITCH LOCK.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, EMERY A. STEWART, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Sioux City, in the county of Woodbury and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railway- Switch Locks, of which the following is a specification.

The invention has for its primary object the production of an improved self-locking railway switch. 1

Another object of the invention is the production of arailway switch embodying aselfa acting lock which supplants the commonly used padlock which often is lost or left unlocked by the switchman.

Another ob]ect of the invention is the production of a railway switch of the typehaving an operating lever to throw the switch; the lever being ointed to be swung 1nto moperatlve position into engagement with the frame of theswitch and embodyingself-acting locking mechanism which automatically locks the lever against retrograde movement when the latter is thrown into engagement with the switch frame.

With these and other objects in view, the invention, consisting in the construction, combination, and novel arrangement of parts, will be fully understood from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this application, and inwhich like I characters of reference indicate correspond 35 ing parts throughout the several views, of which,'

Figure'l is an elevation'of aswitch embodying my improvement; i

Fig. 2 is an enlarged side elevation of the controlling lever-head, parts being cut away;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the same; Fig. 4c is a plan of the same;

- claims.

Specification of Letters Patent.

taken on the Patented Mar.16, 1920.

Applioation filed November 30, 1918. Serial No. 264,842.

Referring now, particularly to Fig.1, the

switch illustrated embodies a frame or ped estal, 7, having at its top a plate, 8. In

the pedestal is rotatably mounted a control ling shaft, 9, provided with a crank, 10, connected with the switch rod, l1, which it will be understood, is connected to the rails and by the shaft, 9,.throws the rails or switch points laterally. Above the plate, 8, the shaft, 9, carries a-fixed lever-head, 12, havinga toothed segment, 13, intermeshed with a toothed segment, 14:, mounted on the tar get'shaft, 15, rotatably supported: on the pedestal. The'free end of the head, 12, is

bifurcated as at 16, to inclose the end of the lever handle, 17, pivoted therein, to swing in a'plane at right angles to'the plane in which the lever head swings. When in op- I by its longitudinal" movement when actuated erative position the handle, 17, is swung in I the directionof the frame and into engagement with notches, 18, in the frame member, 8, thus preventing movement of the lever-head. The structure above defined rep-;

resents no part of the present invention,but

serves to illustrate that type of railway,

switch with which the device of my inventionis, perhaps, best applied. v P

In the construction of my device the lever handle, 17, is fixed on its pivot pin," 19, which is journaled in the bifurcated portion of the lever-head, 12, and carries a fixed segment, 20, freely inclosed within the head. IVithin the head is a bell-crank' 21, fulcrumed as at 22, to the head, one arm of the said bell-crank being provided witha shoulder, 28, engageable with a shoulder,

24-, on the segment, the said shoulders be ingso positioned and related as to prevent rotation of the segment in a direction'to permit the lever handle to be swung out of engagement withthe notch, 18, of the switch frame. The other side ofthe'segment, 20, is provided 'witha shoulder, 2 5, engaging one end of the plunger, 26, the opposite end of which engagesthe other arm of the bellcrank; the said bell-crank arm being held yieldably inengagement with the plunger by a compressionspring, 27, interposed between the said arm and lever head. As

the lever is swung toward its inoperative j 2 position the segment coacts with the plun-' ger, 26, and the ad acent bell-crank arm to] throw the shouldered bell-crank arm into engagement with the segment. By disengaging the shouldered bell-crank arm from I the lock-bolt being provided with. a slot,

41, through which a stud, 42, on the case, protrudes to limit the movement of the loch-bolt; and a sliding plate, 34, carrying a secondary lock-bolt, 35, engageable with theapertured finger and opposite the companion bolt. The lock-bolts are held yieldably towardeach other as by a spring,

3,6. 1 he ends of the lockbolts are inclined at an angleto the finger whereby the finger may be forced between the bolts to permit their engagement in the opening, 33. The

-- face of the lever-,liead is covered by a plate,

3 7, having a key hole, 38, to receive a key (not shown) which rotates on a pin, 39, to r throw the lock bolt out of engagement with the finger, 28.

Itis non clear that when. the lever handle, 17,. is swung into engagement with the frame or intoits inoperative position it is secure a ainst retro rade movement et' b b i 7 when: the lock bolts by the use of the key are disengaged from the'bell-crank finger the spring, 27, coacts with the bell-crank to disengage the shouldered arm from the segment shoulder, 24;, and thenact on the plunger, 26, to turn the segment shoulder, 241, to a position out of registration with the shoulder of the bell-crank, whereupon the key may be removed and the lever-handle swung into operative position.

Having. thus described my invention, whatI claim as new and desire to secure by-Letters Patent, of the United States, is,

1. In a railway-switch, a frame, a rotat-' able" swltch-rod-controllmg shaft, a lateral.

lever-head fixed on the shaft, a lever-handle pivotedto the head to swing toward the frame substantially at right angles to the plane ofv movement of the head, and engageable with the frame to prevent movement of the head, an engageable member carried by the head, means carried the head engagedwith said member by swinging the handle into' engagement with the frame, and a lock carried by the head and including a self-acting lock-bolt, and a lockbolt-keep'er carried by said means and engageable by the lock-bolt to prevent disengagement of said. means.

2jln a railway-switch, a frame,.a rotatable switch-rod-controlling. shaft, a lateral lever; head fixed on the shaft, a lever-handle.

gageable by said lock-bolt to prevent disen-' gageinent of said means from the. said memher and yieldab-le means to impel the handle from the frame.

3. In ,a ra lway switeh, a frame, a rotatable switch-r0d-controlling shaft, a: lateral Y lever-head fixed on the shaft, a transverse spindle journaled in the head, alever-handle fixed on the spindle whereby the handle may be swungtoward and from the frame at substantially right-angles to the plane of movement of the head, said handle being engageable with the frame to prevent turning of the head, radial projecting means on the spindle within the head, means within the head movable intoand out of engagement with the projecting means, mechanism actuated movement of the handletoward the frame to move said second means into. engagement with the projecting means, and a lock operable to prevent disengagement of said second means. s

a. In a railway-switch, a frame, a rotatable switclrrod-controllingV shaft, a lateral lever-head fixed on the shaft, a transverse spindle j ournaled in the head, a lever-handle fixed on the spindle whereby the handle may be swung toward and from the frame at substantially right-angles to the plane of movement of the head, said handle being engageable with the frame to prevent turn ing of the head, radially projecting means on the spindle within the head, an, arm pivoted in the head to swing toward and from the projecting means, and swung into engagement with the projecting means by swinging of the handle toward the'frame, to prevent rotation of the spindle, and a lock in the head operable to prevent swingof movement of the headfsaid h'andle beingengageable with the frame to prevent movement of the head, radially projecting means on they spindle. within the head, anparm pivoted within the head to swing toward means from the projectin and from the projecting means, held yieldiulso to prevent rotation of the spindle, and a look operable to prevent retraction of the arm.

6. In a railway-switch, a frame, a rotatable switch-rod-controlling shaft, a lateral lever-head fixed on the shaft, a transverse spindle journaled in the head, a leverhanclle fixed on the spindle, whereby the handle may be swung toward and from the frame at substantially right-angles to the plane of movement of the head, said handle being engageaible with the frame to prevent movement of the head, radially projecting means on the spindle within the head, an

arm pivoted within the head to swing toward and from the projecting means, and swung into engagement with the projecting means by swinging of the handle toward the frame, to Prevent rotation of the spindle, and a lock automatically engaged with the arm when the latter is swung into engagement with the projecting means, to prevent retraction of the arm.

7 In a railway-switch, a frame, a rotatable switeh-rod-controlling shaft, a lateral lever-head fixed on the shaft,a transverse spindle journaled in the head, a leverhandle fixed on the spindle, whereby the handle may be swung toward and from the frame at substantially right-angles to the plane of movement of the head, said handle being engageable with the frame to prevent movement of the head, radially projecting means on the spindle within the head, a bell-crank fulorumed to the head, one arm thereof being engageable with the projecting means to prevent rotation of the spindle, a connection between the other bell-crank arm and said means, operable as the handle is swung toward the frame, to force said first amnintoengagement with the proj ecting means, and a look operable to prevent disengagement of said arm from said means.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 16th day of November, I v 

